Need to repair a broken piece of fired PMC?
Make your own solder paste. Add 26 drops of Lavender Oil and the same amount of water to a jar of PMC paste. Stir gently. The paste will ball up in a glob. Leave overnight, then mix. Use to repair broken, fired PMC pieces. Tests prove that pieces joined with this paste, then fired, are extremely strong.
A new import will be Pardo, a fabulous new polymer clay that is soft and ready to use, no pasta machine!
Order expected beginning September.
How does it work?
Under the proper conditions, crystals of metal fuse together in the same way that droplets of water run together to make larger puddles on the window pane. In the case of metals, oxides (tarnish) that form naturally on most metals prevent this from happening. The solution here is to use precious or noble metals in their pure state. These do not readily oxidize so even at the high temperatures needed to induce fusion they remain free of coatings.
Form
Using simple tools and your own very talented fingers, PMC is rolled, pressed, squeezed, layered and molded, punched cut into a desired shape. Parts can be added, removed and refined as you go, making this a spontaneous and liberating process.
Firing
After it has dried, the PMC object is taken to a specific heat, this burns off the binder. This goes off as a harmless smoke. At this point the PMC is a fragile porous metallic husk. At higher temperatures the particles melt into one another to form a solid dense metal. Depending on the type of PMC, this can take from 10 minutes to two hours.
Finishing
After firing, the object can be handled like any other silver or gold item. It can be soldered, burnished, buffed, tumbled, plated, etc. to achieve whatever finish you want.
When something as innovative as PMC comes along, all you want to do is share it with like-minded individuals.
This was the theory behind the beginnings of The Beaded Door – a dynamic company that imports and distributes PMC in South Africa, offering information and hands-on training in the use of Precious Metal Clay throughout the country to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to try this exceptional product.
